realitista

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/25925641

A former senior Soviet KGB spy chief has claimed that Donald Trump was recruited as a spy by Russian intelligence as early as 38 years ago by his department, and given the codename ‘Krasnov’.

In an extraordinary post on Facebook on 20 February, Alnur Mussayev – who used to run the successor to the Soviet-era KGB in Kazakhstan – claimed that he was personally aware of Trump’s recruitment by the agency in 1987.

The recruitment, he said, was undertaken by his own KGB department. One of the key roles of that department was to acquire intelligence through business leaders in Western countries.

A former senior Soviet KGB spy chief has claimed that Donald Trump was recruited as a spy by Russian intelligence as early as 38 years ago by his department, and given the codename ‘Krasnov’.

In an extraordinary post on Facebook on 20 February, Alnur Mussayev – who used to run the successor to the Soviet-era KGB in Kazakhstan – claimed that he was personally aware of Trump’s recruitment by the agency in 1987.

The recruitment, he said, was undertaken by his own KGB department. One of the key roles of that department was to acquire intelligence through business leaders in Western countries.

"Many leaders have talked about a Europe that needs its own military — an Army of Europe. I believe that the time has come. The Armed Forces of Europe must be created.

This is not harder than standing firm against Russian attacks — as we have already done. But this isn't just about increasing defense spending as a GDP ratio. Money is needed, yes — but money alone won’t stop an enemy assault."

"Does America need Europe? As a market, yes. But as an ally? For the answer to be 'yes,' Europe needs a single voice — not a dozen different ones.

A few days ago, President Trump told me about his conversation with Putin. Not once did he mention that America needs Europe at that table. That says a lot. The old days are over — when America supported Europe just because it always had.

But President Trump once said: What matters is not the family you were born into, but the one you build. We must build the closest possible relationship with America, and — yes, a new relationship — but as Europeans, not just as separate nations. That's why we need a unified foreign policy, a coordinated diplomacy, the foreign policy of a common Europe."

"Europe has everything it takes. Europe just needs to come together and start acting in a way that no one can say 'no' to Europe, boss it around, or treat it like a pushover."

"Look at what Putin is trying to do. This is his game. Putin wants one-on-one talks with America — just like before the war, when they met in Switzerland and looked how to carve up the world.

Next, Putin will try to get the U.S. President to stand on Red Square on May 9th — this year — not as a respected leader, but as a prop in his performance. We don't need that."

Via ToothyBJ

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/23909193

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/23381885

Summary

Elon Musk sparked outrage in Germany by endorsing the far-right, anti-immigrant Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party on his platform, X, claiming “only the AfD can save Germany.”

The AfD, which polls second ahead of Germany’s February snap election, has been labeled extremist by German intelligence.

Political leaders accused Musk of election interference, while others criticized his remarks as harmful. Musk later doubled down, calling for Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s resignation.

Musk’s comments align with his past support for far-right and anti-immigration figures across Europe and beyond.

The trigger for the November plunge was U.S. sanctions on Russian lenders, including state-owned Gazprombank. Up until now, Gazprombank, through which payments for Russian gas were made, was the only major Russian state bank not to have been sanctioned by Washington. The U.S. move means there will be less foreign currency entering Russia as payment for gas exports (until a workaround is found). When the news filtered through, everyone rushed to buy foreign currency and, as Western sanctions have already hollowed out Russian currency markets, any sudden change leads to exchange rate fluctuations.

Via Mr. Lovenstein